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Show HN: ESPectre – Motion detection based on Wi-Fi spectre analysis

(github.com)
215 points francescopace | 2 comments | 17 Nov 25 14:40 UTC | HN request time: 0.236s | source

Hi everyone, I'm the author of ESPectre.

This is an open-source (GPLv3) project that uses Wi-Fi signal analysis to detect motion using CSI data, and it has already garnered almost 2,000 stars in two weeks.

Key technical details:

- The system does NOT use Machine Learning, it relies purely on Math. — Runs in real-time on a super affordable chip like the ESP32. - It integrates seamlessly with Home Assistant via MQTT.

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culi ◴[18 Nov 25 00:01 UTC] No.45959887[source]▶
The surveillance implications for this technology are fascinating and frightening.
replies(1): >>45959978 #
1. francescopace ◴[18 Nov 25 00:16 UTC] No.45959978[source]▶
The project’s open-source nature acts as an ethical safeguard, and I am explicitly not pursuing any identity recognition features, just movement detection.

But you are absolutely right that, in theory, misuse of this technology could reveal certain behavioral patterns that might lead to identification.

However, it can also be extremely useful for safety purposes, for example, detecting people during a house fire or an earthquake.

replies(1): >>45961375 #
2. culi ◴[18 Nov 25 04:23 UTC] No.45961375[source]▶
This particular project isn't what terrifies me. It's the technology itself which I'm certain you won't be the last to develop and quite likely not even the first. There are plenty of state actors that likely already have their hands on a technology like this or are working on it